Citation Format Guide
What follows is a very simple and commonly accepted method of citation. This method of citation is the
one used in my discipline--English--and other disciplines have their own methods, but in the absence of
any specific instructions to do otherwise, this method should stand you in good stead in your college and
professional career. Above all, remember that any set of rules for citation of sources is meant to give
credit when credit is due; that is, when you are using words or ideas that are not your own. It is much
more important to understand the purpose of citation than to memorize any particular set of rules. The
rules may change depending on what you are doing at any given time in your life; the purpose will not.
In this class, we'll use what's called "parenthetical citation." There are no footnotes in parenthetical
citation. Footnotes would only be used if you needed to supply information that wouldn't fit with the
flow of your main text. Instead of footnotes, in parenthetical citation you put the relevant citation at the
end of the quote or paraphrase you are employing. For instance:
1. Fields argues that Americans take "for granted that everything people of African descent do, think, or
say is racial in nature" (98). Note the positioning of the quote mark before the parentheses and the period
after them.
2. If it is not clear from context which author the quote is from, then include the author's last name at the
end of the quote: It has been argued that Americans take "for granted that everything people of African
descent do, think, or say is racial in nature" (Fields 98).
3. If you use more than one text by the same author, then use the title of the essay or book instead of the
name of the author.
4. The rules are the same if you are paraphrasing: Fields argues that Americans think anything
done or said by African-Americans has to do with race (98).
5. Other cases can come up, although they probably won't in this class. Use your common sense,
remembering that giving proper credit is more important than following some set of rules correctly.
6. You must include a bibliography at the end of your paper on a separate sheet. Order your texts by
author's last name as below.
Parenti, Michael, Make Believe Media. (New York: St. Martin's Press, 1992): 177-213.
Romano, Carlin, "The Grisly Truth About the Bare Facts." Reading the News. Robert Karl Manoff
and Michael Schudson, eds. (New York: Pantheon, 1986): 38-78.
23